Daiwa vs Shimano casting reels

[Adam Markley]

Title says it all. Which brand do you prefer, and why? I'm in the market for a new reel, and can't decide which to go with. budget is 150-200$. any help appreciated

[roadwarrior]

You will be happy with either brand. My preference is Shimano.

 

 

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

With your budget you’d have to try to wrong among the name brands. Why not try each and see what YOU prefer?

[J Francho]

I use both, as well as a few other brands.

[JediAmoeba]

I have owned:

Daiwa - absolutely my favorite brand and has never let me down. 

Pflueger- their spinning reels are ok but never impressed me.

Lews - I have 4 and they are a big let down.

Abu Garcia - once a long time ago they were great I hear...my experiences have been underwhelming.

Syongyang or something- it was 20 bucks and about what one would expect.

KastKing - I have 3 and they just dont feel refined and failed on me more than once.

Mitchell - decent spinning reels for cheap.

Zebco -  haha.  Great for kids catching gills.

Cardinal- Worked for me when I was a kid but now Abu owns them so I imagine they are junk.

 

I have never tried or owned a Shimano.  I dont know why, but Daiwa has always been good to me so I never saw a reason to try them as they were never readily available to me.  And I have never seen anyone with a Shimano that showed me any reason they outperform a Daiwa.

 

Oh, I also have a GH100 I got off Ali Express...uggh, is all I have to say.

[Beeno]

Your gonna have to try them for yourself see what works for you.

[Bass Rutten]

8 minutes ago, JediAmoeba said:

Lews - I have 4 and they are a big let down.

I was thinking about dabbling with lews reels this year. What don’t you like about them?

[Adam Markley]

its tough to get your hands on any reels and actually test them at this time. that is why i'm asking. i have both currently and they're pretty close in performance. was just curious what others thought.

[NJBasstard]

I don't think one necessarily outshines the other at the same price points and feel like you can't go wrong either way. I've used both, but almost always like the Shimano's ergonomics better. It comes down to what feels better in your hands.

[Hook2Jaw]

I'm a Daiwa user myself, but I used to own a few Shimano Bantam Curados.  I believe the Daiwa reels that have Magforce braking are more user friendly and more difficult to backlash.  I believe Shimano reels cast a tad bit farther.

 

Ease of use versus a bit more performance, in my opinion.  You cannot go wrong with either.  Pick your poison.

 

My poison is named Tatula 100.

[BassSteve]

11 minutes ago, Adam Markley said:

its tough to get your hands on any reels and actually test them at this time. that is why i'm asking. i have both currently and they're pretty close in performance. was just curious what others thought.

Which models do you currently have? I have the Curado and Curado 70 as Shimano goes

[FishinBuck07]

11 minutes ago, Bassjam2000 said:

I was thinking about dabbling with lews reels this year. What don’t you like about them?

I have nothing but Lews reels and they work just fine for me, I have the Tournament MB reels and Tournament MP reels, never had a problem with them. But everyone has their own opinion of all brands in the fishing industry!!

[garroyo130]

23 minutes ago, JediAmoeba said:

Zebco -  haha.  Great for kids catching gills.

Idk about this. I pulled up a couple redfish in the 10lb range on a 33 when i was in high school. 

[JediAmoeba]

12 minutes ago, Bassjam2000 said:

I was thinking about dabbling with lews reels this year. What don’t you like about them?

I have a Laser Mg Speed Spool, a super Duty Wide Speed Spool, An American Hero combo and a Mach Crush.  They are OK but for me if I tey and get everything out of it I get fluffing every other cast and the performance just isnt there for me.  I pick up any one of my Daiwas and I easily pick up 20 yards.  

 

It could be the fact I am used to the Daiwas since I have used them for 25 years because I know others like them.

3 minutes ago, garroyo130 said:

Idk about this. I pulled up a couple redfish in the 10lb range on a 33 when i was in high school. 

I have seen a lot of big catfish caught in them too.  But I have also seen a lot break off - the drag on them is terrible and the line is grinding on a pin that keeps the line rolling... I wouldnt trust it for any significant fishing 

[FrankN209]

I have/had both. I owned a Daiwa Steez, atm I own a Daiwa SV103. I have 2 Shimano's now, with the MGL spool. I've always liked the magnetic brake system. But the new MGL spools on the Shimano's are outstanding. I actually prefer my Shimano's over the Daiwa's. I'm not saying Daiwa is bad, they make terrific reels. But ultimately, you have to decide for yourself by using them. 

[Adam Markley]

11 minutes ago, BassSteve said:

Which models do you currently have? I have the Curado and Curado 70 as Shimano goes

They’re not similar reels, but a shimano Cardiff and a catalina tw

4 minutes ago, FrankN209 said:

I have/had both. I owned a Daiwa Steez, atm I own a Daiwa SV103. I have 2 Shimano's now, with the MGL spool. I've always liked the magnetic brake system. But the new MGL spools on the Shimano's are outstanding. I actually prefer my Shimano's over the Daiwa's. I'm not saying Daiwa is bad, they make terrific reels. But ultimately, you have to decide for yourself by using them. 

I was looking at the sv103. A couple people recommended it, but was wondering how it compared to the shimano reels in that price point

[FrankN209]

4 minutes ago, Adam Markley said:

They’re not similar reels, but a shimano Cardiff and a catalina tw

I was looking at the sv103. A couple people recommended it, but was wondering how it compared to the shimano reels in that price point

The Bantam MGL is very hard to beat. Such a great reel. Solid, casts smooth for a very good price. 

[TcRoc]

I have both . Love my Curado Dc and my Daiwa HLC. The system on the Dc is awesome.. at the same time there is something about casting the HLC that I can't get enough of...

[JediAmoeba]

13 minutes ago, FrankN209 said:

The Bantam MGL is very hard to beat. Such a great reel. Solid, casts smooth for a very good price. 

The Bantam MGL also costs twice as much as a Daiwa SV 103

[roadwarrior]

47 minutes ago, BassSteve said:

Which models do you currently have? I have the Curado and Curado 70 as Shimano goes

2 Core 50MG7

1 Core 100

2 CTE100GT

2 Aldebaran

1 Curado 100

1 Chronach 50MG

1 Calcutta Conquest 100

1 Calcutta Conquest 300

1 Calias

1 Stella 1000

3 Stells 2500

2 Okuma Helios

1 Diawa Alpha

[FrankN209]

11 minutes ago, JediAmoeba said:

The Bantam MGL also costs twice as much as a Daiwa SV 103

LOL, no they don't. I can get a Bantam Cheaper on JapanLure, than a SV103 on The Tackle Trap...

[FishTank]

I have both and like both.  With your budget you can get a Curado > great all purpose reel.  Easy to use and set up  

 

Or.... Daiwa Tatula SV TWS or maybe a Tatula Elite.  

 

My choice would be the Tatula even though I love my Curado.  You really can't go wrong with either one. 

[JediAmoeba]

5 minutes ago, FrankN209 said:

LOL, no they don't. I can get a Bantam Cheaper on JapanLure, than a SV103 on The Tackle Trap...

What?

 

https://japanlureshop.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=+Bantam. 270 dollars...

 

https://japanlureshop.com/daiwa-20-tatula-sv-tw.html. 184 dollars...

[browne762]

When I was younger Shimano was the bee's knees, but out of my price range for baitcasters. Daiwa wasn't really available around town so not many talked about it. This was before internet ordering.

 

I got out of fishing for many years and just got back into it around the summer of 2018. I am fortunate enough now to purchase some nicer equipment then what I had back in the day. So, the first thing I did was go out and get some Shimano products. First reel I purchased was a Curado DC. I then purchase two more of those the next week. Then were the Curado K and the Curado 70.

 

Then after reading so much about how nice the Daiwa Tatula SVs were, I got two of those. They looked and felt nice. Got out to use them on the water, and they just aren't my thing. I dislike them. They don't cast the same as what I was use to nor like the new Shimano reels I had just gotten. I feel like I am the only person on this site that doesn't like them. I used them on two outings and have not used them since. They are not garbage, but they are just not my thing. 

 

Clearly Daiwa makes quality equipment, not saying they don't, but they might not be for everybody is all I am getting at. Same can be said for Shimano. 

 

I would recommend getting a couple demo samples from TW before pulling the trigger on one brand or the other.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/demoprogram.html

[Cgrinder]

If you can swing a Bantam MGL, buy it. It feels like a round reel in a low profile package; a pleasant fish-winching experience.

 

On the Daiwa side, I just received a Tatula Elite and an SV TW 103. I know quite a few folks bought one or both recently so in the next couple weeks there will be a lot of first hand info posted. I have very high hopes for the Elite.